FIA summons 4 PIA officials

LAHORE - FIA summoned four senior PIA officials asking them to get their statements recorded before an inquiry officer in connection with probes initiated against them on charges of getting promotion on the basis of fake MBA degrees.According sources in FIA, Anti Corruption Circle (ACC) started an inquiry into the issue. Inspector Riaz Butt, who was conducting the inquiry, has summoned four PIA officers including Reservation and Ticketing Officers (RTOs), Muhammad Ijaz, Irfan Basit, Tanvir Qasim and Sales Promotion Officer (SPO), Wajid Saleem. PIA employees Mudassar Hassan Rana and others had submitted an application to FIA claiming that the said officers, working in the Marketing and Sales Department promoted to the next grade, did not hold the degrees of any educational institution recognised by the Higher Education Commission. They also claimed in their application that the promotion of these officers was against the law, policy and procedure. They further claimed that above said officers had remained present on duty and also attended MBA classes in Azad Kashmir at the same time.Mudassar said these officers neither obtained NOC from the airlines nor requested leave to take examination of said degrees.When contacted, the PIA spokesman said that the management received summons from FIA but there was not any serious issue. There was no major development so far in the inquiry.